Stringed instrument construction



April 29, 1969 J. L. BAKER 3,44Q9l9 STRINGED INSTRUMENT CONSTRUCTION Filed Aug. 12, 1966 QQ-IYNVENTORQ g g z/flJfPH L 54 KM United States Patent 3,440,919 STRINGED INSTRUMENT CONSTRUCTION Joseph L. Baker, Nashville, Tenn., assignor to Baker- Lewis Music Enterprises, Inc. Filed Aug. 12, 1966, Ser. No. 572,108 Int. Cl. Gc 3/06 US. Cl. 84-291 8 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The present invention generally relates to novel improvements in musical instruments especially stringed instruments such as guitars, violins, mandolins, ukuleles and the like which employ a hollow body forming a resonance chamber therefor.

An object of the present invention is to provide a stringed musical instrument having a hollow body con structed from a plurality of individual pieces of material with each piece forming a very small part of the total surface area of the body. The individual pieces are secured together in edge-to-edge relation in order to form a composite hollow body.

Another object of this invention is to provide a hollow body component of a stringed musical instrument employing relatively small and thin individual pieces each of which has planar flat surfaces. Certain of the indi vidual pieces, namely, those used to form a peripheral wall for the body have inclined edge surface of approximately 3 degrees from the perpendicular thus forming a curved peripheral wall when the individual pieces are joined together with a suitable adhesive such as acetone or the like.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a hollow body for use as the sound chamber of a stringed musical instrument such as a guitar or the like constructed of a plurality of individual pieces and including a top wall and a bottom wall interconnected by a peripheral wall with the corner junctures therebetween being provided with a right angled binding strip to provide a secure joint which is neat in appearance, long lasting and effective.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a hollow body for a stringed musical instrument which is constructed of a plurality of small individual pieces which are joined together to form a hollow body which has superior tone quality and is warp resistant while at the same time is relatively inexpensive to manufacture, easy to use and reliable in use.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIGURE 1 is a top plan view of a guitar constructed in accordance with this invention;

FIGURE 2 is a bottom plan view of the guitar;

FIGURE 3 is a side elevation of the guitar;

FIGURE 4 is an end view of the hollow body of the guitar;

3,440,919 Patented Apr. 29, 1969 FIGURE 5 is an end view from the neck end of the guitar;

FIGURE 6 is a detailed sectional view illustrating the planar construction of the top and bottom walls; and

FIGURE 7 is a detailed sectional view along a portion of the peripheral wall illustrating the inclination of the side edges of the individual pieces.

Referring now specifically to the drawings, the numeral 10 generally designates a hollow guitar body having a top wall 12 and bottom wall 14 interconnected by a peripheral wall 16. The embodiment of the invention illustrated is a guitar and includes the usual neck 18, bridge 20 and mounting studs or projections 22 for receiving the usual shoulder strap. The top wall 12 has the usual hole 24 underlying the strings (not shown) whereby the guitar operates in the usual manner.

The top wall 12 and bottom wall 14 are formed from a plurality of thin generally rectangular individual pieces 26 secured together in edge-to-edge staggered relation. The peripheral wall 16 is also constructed of a plurality of individual pieces 28 of equal dimensions with the side edges 30 thereof inclined at approximately 3 degrees from perpendicular to the planar surfaces.

The individual pieces may be constructed of wood, plastic, fiberglass, metal or other suitable material. Various bonding agents may be employed such as acetone or other suitable adhesives depending upon the materials used.

The interior bracing for the hollow body may be conventional and an angled binding strip 32 is provided for the corner junctures between the peripheral wall and the top and bottom wall. The binding strip 32 may be of wood, plastic or the like and bonded into a recess 34 to provide a smooth external surface. In forming the body, the pieces are laid on a surface which is either fiat or provided with the desired curvature and the pieces are individually glued to each other. The pieces may vary as to size and thickness depending upon the particular instrument to be formed. By using individual pieces glued together, Warping of the body will be substantially completely eliminated and the tonal quality of the instrument will be greatly enhanced.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. A stringed musical instrument comprising a hollow body having relatively thin top and bottom walls interconnected by a peripheral wall disposed in substantially perpendicular relation to the top and bottom walls, each of said walls being constructed of a single layer of a plurality of individual flat pieces secured together to form a wall panel.

2. The musical instrument as defined in claim 1 wherein the individual pieces forming the peripheral wall are each provided with inclined edges thereby forming a curved peripheral wall when the pieces are secured in edge-to-edge abutting engagement.

3. The musical instrument as defined in claim 2 Wherein the angle of the inclined edges of the individual pieces forming the peripheral wall is approximately 3 degrees from perpendicular with the flat surfaces thereof.

4. The musical instrument as defined in claim 1 wherein the corner juncture between the peripheral wall and the top and bottom wall is provided with a right angled corner binding member.

3 4 5. The musical instrument as defined in claim 1 where- References Cited in each individual piece has at least two parallel edges UNITED STATES PATENTS adhesively bonded to other pieces.

6. The musical instrument as defined in claim 1 in 663,440 12/1900 Isben 84268 which each of said pieces is disposed in stepped relation r 755,086 3/1904 Voorhees 84268 to each adjoining piece 0 211,337 1/1879 Marx et al 84291 7. The musical instrument as defined in claim 5 in which said individual pieces are disposed in staggered re- RICHARD WILKINSON Pr'mary Exammer' lationship to each other in said top and bottom walls. GARY M. POLUMBUS, Assistant Examiner.

8. The musical instrument as defined in claim 1 in 10 which the individual pieces are secured together only in U.S. Cl. X.R. edge-toedge relationship .to form said wall panel. 84267, 275, 290 

